Book of Common Prayer
Psalm 75[a]
God Is Judge of the World
1 For the director.[b] According to “Do not destroy!” A psalm of Asaph. A song.
2 We give thanks[c] to you, O God,
we give thanks to you.
For your wondrous deeds
declare that your name is near.
3 [d]You say, “When I receive the assembly,
I will judge with equity.
4 When the earth quakes, with all its inhabitants,
it is I who will hold its pillars firm.[e] Selah
5 [f]“I say to the arrogant,[g] ‘Do not boast,’
and to the wicked, ‘Do not lift up your horns.
6 Do not rebel against heaven
or speak with arrogance against the Rock.’ ”[h]
7 [i]For judgment does not come from east or west,
nor from the wilderness or the mountains.[j]
8 Rather, it is God who judges rightly,
humbling one and exalting another.[k]
9 The Lord holds in his hand a cup
filled with foaming wine and richly spiced.
When he pours it out,
all the wicked[l] of the earth must drink;
they will drain it down to the dregs.
10 As for me, I will proclaim this forever;
I will sing praises[m] to the God of Jacob.
11 “I will cut off all the horns of the wicked,
but the horns of the righteous[n] will be exalted.”
Psalm 76[o]
God, Defender of Zion
1 For the director.[p] With stringed instruments. A psalm of Asaph. A song.
2 [q]God is renowned in Judah;
his name is great in Israel.
3 His tent has been established in Salem,
his dwelling place in Zion.
4 There he shattered the flashing arrows,
shields and swords and weapons of war. Selah
5 [r]You are awesome and resplendent,
more majestic than the everlasting mountains.
6 The bold warriors lie plundered
and sleeping their last sleep.[s]
And not one of the men of war
can lift up his hands.
7 At your rebuke, O God of Jacob,
both chariots and horses lie prostrate.
8 You indeed are awesome;
who can stand in your presence when your anger is aroused?
9 You thundered your verdicts from the heavens;
the earth in its terror was silent
10 when you arose, O God, to judge,
to rescue all the afflicted of the land.[t] Selah
11 Human wrath only serves to praise you;[u]
those who survive your anger will cling to you.
12 [v]Make vows to the Lord, your God, and keep them;
let all the lands nearby
bring gifts to the Awesome One,
13 who breaks the spirit of rulers
and inspires fear in the kings of the earth.
Psalm 23[a]
Prayer to the Good Shepherd
1 A psalm of David.
The Lord is my shepherd;
there is nothing I shall lack.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures;[b]
he leads me to tranquil streams.
3 He restores my soul,[c]
guiding me in paths of righteousness
so that his name may be glorified.
4 Even though I wander
through the valley of the shadow of death,[d]
I will fear no evil,
for you are at my side,
with your rod and your staff
that comfort me.
5 [e]You spread a table for me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;[f]
my cup overflows.
6 Only goodness and kindness[g] will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever and ever.
Psalm 27[a]
Trust in God, Our Light and Salvation
1 Of David.
The Lord is my light[b] and my salvation;
whom should I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom should I be afraid?
2 When evildoers close in on me
to devour my flesh,[c]
it is they, my adversaries and enemies,
who stumble and fall.
3 Even if an army encamps against me,
my heart[d] will not succumb to fear;
even if war breaks out against me,
I will not have my trust shaken.
4 There is only one thing I ask of the Lord,
just one thing I seek:
to dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
so that I may enjoy the beauty of the Lord[e]
and gaze on his temple.
5 For he will hide me in his shelter
in times of trouble.
He will conceal me under the cover of his tent[f]
and place me high upon a rock.
6 Even now my head is raised high
above my enemies who surround me.
In his tent I will offer sacrifices[g] with joyous shouts;
I will sing and chant praise to the Lord.
7 O Lord, hear my voice when I cry out;
be merciful to me and answer me.
8 My heart[h] says of you,
“Seek his face.”
It is your face, O Lord, that I seek;
9 do not hide your face[i] from me.
Do not turn away your servant in anger,
you who have been my help.
Do not reject or forsake me,
O God, my Savior.
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord will gather me up.[j]
11 Teach me your way,[k] O Lord,
and lead me along a level path
because of my enemies.
12 Do not abandon me to the will of my adversaries,
for lying witnesses have risen against me,
breathing forth violence in their malice.
13 I am confident that I will behold the goodness of the Lord[l]
in the land of the living.
14 Place your hope in the Lord:
be strong and courageous in your heart,
and place your hope in the Lord.
20 Announce this in the house of Jacob,
proclaim it in Judah:
21 Pay attention to this,
you foolish and senseless people,
who have eyes but do not see,
who have ears but do not hear.
22 Do you have no fear of me? asks the Lord.
Do you not tremble before me?
I was the one who established the sand
as the boundary for the sea,
a perpetual barrier that it can never pass.
Its waves may rise up but cannot prevail;
they may roar but cannot cross the limits.
23 But this people has a rebellious and stubborn heart;
they have risen up in defiance and gone away.
24 Nor do they say to themselves,
“Let us fear the Lord, our God,
who gives us in their proper season
the autumn and spring rains
and unfailingly provides for us
the weeks designated for the harvest.”
25 Your iniquities have upset the order of nature,
and your sins have deprived you of its bounty.
26 For there are wicked scoundrels among my people
who, like fowlers, set traps,
but with men as their quarry.
27 Like a cage full of birds,
their houses are full of treachery.
As a result, they have grown rich and powerful,
28 well fed and well groomed.
Their wickedness knows no bounds,
and they do not practice justice in their dealings.
They do not uphold the rights of the orphan
or defend the cause of the needy.
29 How can I fail to punish such things?
says the Lord.
How can I refuse to exact vengeance on a nation such as this?
30 An appalling and outrageous situation
has occurred in the land.
31 The prophets prophesy falsely,
the priests are in league with them,
and the people are delighted with this situation.
But when the end comes, what will you do?
19 Now we know that what the Law says is addressed to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the entire world may be seen as guilty before God. 20 For no one can be regarded as justified in the sight of God by keeping the Law. The Law brings only the consciousness of sin.
The Redemption in Jesus Christ[a]
21 God’s Righteousness through Faith in Jesus Christ.[b] But now the righteousness of God that is attested by the Law and the Prophets has been manifested apart from law: 22 the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. No distinction has been made. 23 For all have sinned and thereby are deprived of the glory of God, 24 and all are justified by the gift of his grace that is given freely through the redemption in Christ Jesus.
25 God designated him to be a sacrifice of expiation of sin through faith by the shedding of his blood because in his divine forbearance he allowed to be unpunished the sins previously committed. 26 He thus demonstrated his righteousness in the present time so that he might show himself to be just as the one who justifies anyone who has faith in Jesus.
27 Justification through Faith Apart from the Works of the Law. What reason then does one have to boast? It is excluded! By works of the Law? No, rather by the law of faith. 28 For we maintain that one is justified by faith apart from the works of the Law.
29 Is God the God only of the Jews? Is he not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, he is the God of the Gentiles too, 30 since there is only one God, and he will justify both the circumcised and the uncircumcised on the basis of their faith. 31 Are we thereby nullifying the Law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary, we are upholding the Law.
The Light of the World[a]
Jesus, Sign of Contradiction
Chapter 7
Jesus’ Time Has Not Yet Been Fulfilled.[b] 1 After this, Jesus resumed his travels throughout Galilee. He did not want to go about in Judea because the Jews were seeking to kill him.
2 However, when the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was drawing near, 3 his brethren[c] said to him, “Depart from here and go into Judea so that your disciples can perceive the works you are doing. 4 No one who wishes to be publicly known acts in secret. Since you are doing these things, reveal yourself to the world.” 5 For not even his brethren believed in him. 6 Jesus answered them,
“My time has not yet come,
but your time is always right.
7 The world cannot hate you,
but it does hate me
because I testify against it
that its works are evil.
8 Go up to the feast yourselves.
I am not going to this feast,
because my time has not yet fully come.”
9 After he had said this, he stayed behind in Galilee. 10 Later, however, after his brethren had gone up to the feast, he himself also went, not publicly, but in secret.
11 During the feast the Jews were looking for him and asking, “Where is he?” 12 There was widespread murmuring about him among the crowds. Some maintained, “He is a good man,” but others insisted, “No, for he is leading the people astray.” 13 However, no one spoke openly about him for fear of the Jews.
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